Tau Cross: Tau Cross

You have to love when you go into something with no real expectations and the results far exceed what you expected. The press material quote kind of left me scratching my head and wondering, well, so what? "Tau Cross is a punk/metal supergroup of the highest order. Fronted by Rob "The Baron" Miller, vocalist and bassist of the hugely influential UK metallic-punk band Amebix, and rounded out by a band that features Away from Voivod on drums as well as members of cult crust outfit Misery, Tau Cross is the natural evolution of Miller's work in Amebix. Tribal rhythms, searing guitars and Miller's huge booming voice all set to an apocalyptic atmosphere to create an instant classic that will satisfy the crustiest punks and the blackest metallers. " I say 'so what' because, though I've always appreciated Away and what he brings to Voivod, the remaining members of Tau Cross have made little to no impact on me in their respective units, so I figured I'd be in for more of the same here on their self-titled debut. Wrong to assume anything I guess. This is a pretty solid album, with Miller's 'Lemmy on amphetamines' vocal delivery charging over kicked up riffing and some pretty catchy songs that bridge the gap between straight up heavy metal, punk, speed metal, rock 'n' roll, and black metal. "Lazarus" and "Fire in the Sky" both contain some pretty addicting choruses and a wealth of catchy riffs, while "Stonecracker" rages with plenty of punk angst. "We Control the Fear" is a more atmospheric, acoustic piece, sounding almost like a cross between Pink Floyd and Motorhead (strange, I know), and "You People" rocks quite hard thanks to some supreme riffs courtesy of Andy Lefton & Jon Misery. You can hear a little of the black metal influence on "The Lie", and the band even throw in a heavy instrumental, titled "Our Day", which shows just how well they can play off some expertly crafted riffs.

At 12 songs, the album perhaps is a tad too long, as a few of the tracks, especially the more acoustic based numbers, just don't hold up as well as the more raucous pieces, but overall this is a pretty fun release that surprised me in a positive way.

Track Listing

1. Lazarus
2. Fire In The Sky
3. Stonecracker
4. Midsummer
5. Hangmans Hyll
6. We Control The Fear
7. You People
8. Prison
9. Sons of the Soil
10. The Lie
11. Our Day
12. The Devil Knows His Own

Added: May 10th 2015
Reviewer: Pete Pardo
Score:
Related Link: Band Facebook Page
Hits: 1966
Language: english

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